Vladimir Putin chaired a teleconference devoted to the development of the state road network. The prime minister, who is now in Sochi, talked to builders of six sections of federal highways, spanning the territory from Chita to St Petersburg.
Most interesting for Putin was the conversation he had with participants in the Vladivostok-Moscow motor rally, which was organised by the Popular Front and the public organisation Ubitye Dorogi (Bad Roads, formerly Ubitye Dorogi Pskova). They linked up to the teleconference from the Chita-Khabarovsk highway, which Vladimir Putin had personally inspected a year before.
"Last year, there were some sections where work was being finished, and some needed major repairs because the highway was built long ago," the prime minister recalled. "The biggest complaints from drivers were about the disorganisation and lack of accommodation along the route, namely: the absence of communication and infrastructure for servicing drivers; lack of cafes; the difficulties in finding normal camping grounds to spend a night; lack of road markings; and petrol stations."
A lot has changed over the year. For example, instead of sections under repair activists have found long stretches of dirt road. But the situation with mobile communication has improved significantly: now it is available along half of the route. Minister of Communications and Mass Media Igor Shchegolev promised that communication will be available along the entire highway by October 1.
"Indeed, cell towers are being erected everywhere, but at the moment, there is no connection near them," said Alexander Vasilyev, leader of Ubitye Dorogi.
But this is not the main problem along the highways. In Tynda, activists checked the situation with medical services. The first-aid post could be reached only by a dirt road, and there was not a single sign showing the way to it.
"If we had set off at night, we wouldn't have found it," Vasilyev said.
Yet another complaint from the organisation's members was about the absence of the road police posts along the highway. Of course, ordinary drivers are happy about it, since no one can record their violations, and so they drive without any speed limitations. In the Amur Region, the activists did not meet a single highway patrolman for as long as 500 km, Vasilyev said.
"Overall, we saw about six posts between Khabarovsk and the border with the Trans-Baikal territory," he said. "This means that there are very few highway patrolmen on a stretch of about 1,500 km to ensure road safety."
Still, the drivers were the most upset about the situation with fuel. Although there were enough petrol stations along the route, the prices there were beyond any limit: on average, 6 roubles above the price in the European part of Russia. Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov, who is responsible for transportation issues, immediately responded to the complaint and promised to settle the problem with another deputy prime minister, Igor Sechin and eliminate the difference.
"We have a similar problem with jet fuel in the Far East," said Ivanov. "The reason is the monopolization of fuel supply. I will talk to Igor Sechin in order to prevent such a disparity of prices on the same product within the country."
Vladimir Putin promised to travel along the Chita-Khabarovsk highway once again next year, together with Ubitye Dorogi's activists, to see the changes.
By Anastasia Novikova